The first thing we do every morning is crucial to our state of mind and productivity for the rest of the day. The first hour affects the next 23 hours more than one can imagine. Think of your brain as a computer, every single morning, when you wake up, it is restarted and fresh, on a clean slate and ready to consume information. What most people do first thing in the morning is to check their phones, myself included. Reading texts, tweets, checking Instagram likes, and emails, already sets us off on an anxious note for the entire day. Our brains are at its peak early in the morning, believe it or not. Therefore, if you are feeding your brain an overwhelming amount of news, the moment it powers up again, it is bound to set your brain up for a frenzy of thoughts. By the time it is noon, you’re most likely to crash and be burnt out. If you were to take the first hour of your day to perform activities that are going to enrich your mind, your soul, and your peace, you would have an abundance of energy for the entire day. You could complete important tasks, be able to engage with them, and be more present. In this article, I will break down step by step a healthy morning routine that I discovered works best for me. I have been trying this for a while and I realize that it has boosted my performance and presence. I have found that I pay closer attention during class lectures, I can hit the gym and have a satisfying workout, and I engage more with others having valuable conversations. Most importantly, I can hear myself think and detach myself from my ego to feel my presence and everything life has to offer. I have also realized that when I don’t do these steps in the morning, my mood throughout the day is not as optimized and sometimes even irritable. The best tip I could give is to, first of all, wake up an hour earlier than you usually would to not be rushed and be able to enjoy your mornings.
This routine takes an hour and is separated into three 20 minute segments.
Step 1: Exercise!
Fire up the first twenty minutes of your day with an excellent workout. Make yourself feel accomplished within only 20 minutes of being awake. This will certainly wake you up and release endorphins. This task will make you feel so satisfied with yourself because exercising itself is already something that is dreaded. It usually takes people HOURS to even get themselves dressed and go to the gym. The best thing is to have your workout clothes laid out the night prior. That way all you have to do is make your bed and throw it on! It is okay to feel like you cannot do high-intensity exercises at first, but building momentum is what it is all about. Rome was not built in one day, remember that! No one was born as a bodybuilder or a health guru, these are the results people got from habits that were formed through time. With that said, it does not necessarily mean to squat 200 pounds or run 10 miles. Exercising could be yoga, pilates, jogging, HIIT circuits, or whatever you find you enjoy best. This activity is just to kick start your day but doesn’t imply that it is your workout of the day. I run 20 minutes on an empty stomach and then I hit the gym for weight training midday. Everyone does what works best for them! This will certainly develop willpower and train your brain to apply that willpower to every other activity throughout the day.
Step 2: Meditate…
Once you are done with your mini sweat sesh, meditation is the best thing to do to bring your heart rate back down and become present. This will set a peaceful tone, which you can bring with you for the rest of the day. There are bundles of guided meditations on YouTube, which are my personal favorites. They are guided and allow me to focus on what the person is saying instead of my thoughts. There are also apps, such as Calm and Headspace, amongst many others. Being able to detach from all thoughts and emotions for 20 minutes of your morning, will release stress, lower chances of depression or any negative emotions, increases your mood, help with your sleep, and much much more. The benefits of meditation are endless and unbeatable. As college students, we can become so caught up with emotions, deadlines, anxious thoughts, and meditation is the BEST solution for this.
Step 3: Books, Journals, and Podcasts.
Finalize the first hour of your day by either picking up a non-fiction book you enjoy, journaling or listening to a self-development podcast. The last 20 minutes should be spent doing something that allows growth but also making it enjoyable. Therefore, I vary this segment from morning to morning, depending on how I feel on that day. Sometimes I pick up the book I am currently reading, other times I journal how I am feeling or what I am grateful for or even manifest something I want, and other times I listen to a podcast that leaves me on such a positive note. Some good books for this would be The Power of Now, The Book of Joy, The Untethered Soul, and just about anything that will make you more knowledgable and motivate you. Some good podcasts I listen to are VOUS Church, She Thrives Radio, And She Rises…, and my personal favorite that always makes me laugh, Call Her Daddy.
Not every morning will be perfect. Not every workout session will be as intense. Not every meditation will be as focused. Not every reading, journal, or podcast will make you feel as optimized. It is not an easy habit to build, but when has anything easy been worth it? Build your elevated morning and every day, it will only become more and more of a habit. If it gets hard and you consider giving up, weigh out your outcomes! Do you want to spend the only life you get in a rush, stressed, procrastinating, etc., or do you want to live your best life? You are the creator of your own life!